The Kingdom of Sarnor
Surviving from the brink of extinction during the Century of Blood, the Kingdom of Sarnor is the most advanced culture west of the Bone Mountains. Cities The cities of the Kingdom of Sarnor are diverse, particularly so geographically. As such, they are considered by many as parts of four sub-Kingdoms, all still ruled from the High-City of Sarnath. The Grassland Kingdoms * Sarnath * Rathylar * Hornoth * Kyth The Silver Kingdoms * Gornath-by-the-Lake * Kasath * Sallosh * Sathar The Northern Kingdoms * Sarys * Saath * Mardosh The Outlying Kingdoms * Leizoy * Essaria Culture and Society The Sarnori are a proud and battle-hardened people, long of limb, dark of skin, dark eyes and hair as black as the night. Despite the cities in the Kingdom of Sarnor being at war for many centuries, the family of Alexi united the cities, the monarchs stood behind the Alexi’ to fight back against the Dothraki and ending the threat from the horse lords. Like the Dothraki, the Sarnori are expert riders and their people excel on horseback and when fighting from a scythed chariot. Wary of outsiders, the Sarnori are a private people, opening their gates only to traders and merchants into the city of Kasath. Entry into the other major cities of Sarnor is absolutely forbidden. No secrets may leave or enter. It is a great honour and extremely rare, to be invited into the city of Sarnath. In the Kingdom of Sarnor, much like the Valyrian Freehold, it is common practice for Kings to take multiple wives. Due to their trepidation of outsiders and desire to keep the Kingdom of Sarnor united, the Kings would marry with other royal families, marrying each others daughters to keep their alliance strong. Whilst appropriate in theory, it would commonly end in bloodshed. For the wives would grow jealous of one another, often ending in the murder of the other and war breaking out between the King fathers of the brides. Art Beyond the ever popular crafts of the artisans of Myr, the people of Sarnor are considered to be amongst the most talented artists in the Known World. No more is this true than the paintings, tapestries, carpets and sculptures of those residing within the Waterfall city of Sathar, whose staggering natural beauty has inspired innumerous individuals both young and old over the centuries. Whilst religion is often the focus of these works of art, other popular themes include that of nature and warfare in equal measures. Rathylar and Hornoth are also famed for their metal-working, particularly bronze, which are shaped into fanciful animals and warriors riding chariots. Throughout the Kingdom of Sarnor and often placed alongside roads and rivers, a great number of rock carvings can be found, many pre-dating even that of the younger cities of the High Kingdoms, although new reliefs are continuously added by orders of Kings, Princes and Justiciars alike. Detailing ancient heroes, lessons from religion and laws alike, as well as slew of other topics, the most noted example is that of Laxor’s Edict, found upon the road between Sarnath and Rathylar. Near one hundred feet tall, the carving depicts the supposed great great grandson of the legendary king Huzhor Amai, whip and bow in hand, and a dragon, harpy and lion defeated at his feet. An inscription beneath the statue is carved in half a dozen languages, including Sarnori, Valyrian, Ghiscari and Hyrkoonik, as well as the long-forgotten scripts of the Jhogwin and Ifequevron. In the Common Tongue, it is often translated to “The Tallest Men Demand the Tallest Crowns.” Owing to its location near the Trading City of Kasath, it is perhaps the most documented and famous feature in Sarnori culture amongst the Free Cities and beyond. The City of Sallosh-By-The-Silver-Shore, known as the City of Scholars, is famed for its pottery and porcelains, the latter being a craft guarded heavily, even for the standards set by the Sarnori. Goblets, flask, bottles and decorative plates are produced by the kilns found in the heart of city, and shaped with fanciful feather-edge margins chased with paints of green and gold. Language It is based on consonantal roots, mostly triliteral and quadriliteral. Various meanings are obtained by adding short and long vowels, as well as prefixes and suffixes, or by switching the verbs from one form to another. Sarnori employs two major types of sentence: nominal (or equational), and verbal. Each sentence is based on three major features: parts of speech, syntax, and case endings (declension system) completely correlated with the syntax. Whilst an ancient language within Essos, there are hints and some roots of words and sayings that pre-date the Ghiscari Empire, even some Valyrian words would find a place in the Sarnori language. Like the science and religion, the language would evolve over the thousands of years since its birth. At its origin, Sarnori was a harsh and difficult to understand dialect, but as it has evolved, the language has smoothed and become malleable to new scripts. Ascension to the Throne In Sarnori culture, the death of a King is marked by seven days of mourning, followed by seven days of feasting. After the fortnight has passed, all that wish to make their claim against the family of the deceased monarch. If none challenge the authority of the royal family, as is near always the case in Sarnath and the legendary family of Alexi, rule of the city passes to the strongest and most capable amongst the deceased family, be it a child, sibling or otherwise. However, elsewhere in the Kingdom, it is not unheard of for members of the other noble families to challenge the heir presumptive. As tradition decrees, this initiates a duel to the death in the Daarh Clealsh of the city they seek to claim, or on very rare occasions, if Hazhoi’s Edict is invoked, the challenge takes place atop the Mother of Mountains, at the tomb of the High-King Fozhai Alexi. It is traditional for the Kings of the Kingdoms of Sarnor to make a pilgrimage to the mountain named the Mother of Mountains by the Dothraki, to visit the resting place of Fozhai Alexi, the legendary king responsible for uniting the Sarnori against the Dothraki threat in the Century of Blood. Driving the Khalasars back to Vaes Dothrak, he smote his foes at the shores of the Womb of the World, although suffered grievous injuries in the conflict. Ordering he be buried at the peak of the mountain, so that he may always watch over the razed city, lest the horselords’ return. Since then, whenever a new monarch ascends to the throne, it is expected that they, or a chosen representative of their will, makes the climb to visit the tomb of the High-King Fozhai, and pledge themselves to defend Sarnor against external threats above all else. Weddings and Festivals The Offering At the start of each moon, it is typical for the firstborn of each family to make an offering, typically that of a goat or sheep, in order to ensure the prosperity of their family until the next sacrifice. In centuries past, the offering was typically made to a local temple, but with the increasing diversity in beliefs over the years, the recipient of the offering varies widely from family to family. Feasts Every decade, the typically independent Kingdoms come together in a unified celebration of Sarnori history, culture and cuisine. Conflicts must be cast aside for the duration of the celebration, which traditionally lasts for a moon, consisting of four great feasts. * The Feast of Sunrise * The Feast of the Skies * The Feast of the Waters * The Feast of Evening Weddings Weddings in Sarnor are often considered to be excessively formalised by typical Essos standards, for each of seven separate stages must be completed in full before the ceremony is considered valid. Visiting the Woman’s Family To ensure that the pairing is suitable, it is traditional for the family of the husband to visit the potential wife’s family. Upon arrival, they are gifted a selection of fruits, typically limes and pomegranates, which are roasted in honey and walnuts. The Virtues Typically occurring at the same time as the initial visit, the ceremony of virtues is intended to facilitate discussion on what is to be gained in the pairing, as well as examine the merits of both parties. Talents, skills and possessions are often considered with regard to both parties, after which each family will give their consent for the continuation of the stages towards marriage. The Proclamation Public display of love, traditionally considered to be the first time that the couple meet each other, but in recent centuries, it is often the couple themselves that have instigated the start of the wedding process. The Painting Ceremony Meeting together for the first time since the proclamation, the future couple anoint each other with first honey, and then powdered dyes that are mixed with water from the nearest river to the respective parties. If the wedding is taking place in the territory of the Silver Kingdoms (comprising the cities of Sathar, Gornath, Sallosh and Kasath), it is traditional to use water from the Silver Lakes, regardless of the origin of the involved parties. The Engagement Gift As proof of their ongoing pledge to support the new additions to their family, the next stage involves the giving of a gift by each family to the couple, with the husband’s family providing an item for the bride, the wife’s family for the groom. In most cases, the item is minor, considered more of a symbolic gesture of their ongoing pledge, but there are historical examples of particularly lavish gifts, including an effigy shaped from silver by metalsmiths from Hornoth chased with precious stones from the High-King Ralor Alexi upon the marriage of his firstborn son and heir. The Morning Feast In the morning of the day before the wedding, the couple meet once more, sharing a traditional meal prepared for them by the family of the bride. Although the contents do vary between the various cities of Sarnor, all will feature the same three base items. * Bread baked with a coin at their centre - intended to symbolise the prosperity and success of the union to come. * Eggs - to encourage fertility in the couple to ensure a strong and healthy family. * Sugared fruits - in celebration of the sweet and joyful future ahead of the pair. The Wedding Ceremony Traditionally performed at the water side, so that the couple may look upon each other in the reflections to symbolise the light and brightness in their coming futures together. Amongst poorer families, a simple goblet or bowl may be used, but often Kings order the construction of great fountains and plazas for their own ceremonies. The water is often scented with spices and flowers to perfume the air. Each of the couple wears a shawl to the wedding ceremony, which are then sewn together at the conclusion of the ceremony, thus symbolising the unison between the pair.' ' Cuisine Much of Sarnori cuisine is based around the core staple of breads, made from a range of grains and prepared in a variety of forms. Of particular prevalence are soft flatbreads cooked upon flame-heated stones, which are served with nearly every meal, from breaking of fasts, to wedding feasts. Also popular is that of nan‘esl, a type of honey-glazed bread that is often served as a sweet dessert. The temperate climate and vast span of the Grassland and Silver Kingdoms makes the assortment of grown produce deeply diverse. Dates, grapes, pomegranates, melons, figs, cherries and limes are popular through the low and nobleborn alike. Also enjoyed are vegetables including pumpkins, beans, onions, carrots and garlic, often with pastes made from chickpeas and flavoured with oils and spices. The agricultural produce of the Kingdoms is often utilised to bring texture and bulk to spiced sources served with the four principle meats of Sarnor - lamb, beef, goat and chicken. Science and Technology Before the Doom, the Valyrians were considered the most advanced nation west of the Bone Mountains, but given their absence for near four hundred years, they have found themselves surpassed in many regards by the forward-thinkers of Sarnor, particularly those of the city of Sallosh-by-the-Silver-Shore, colloquially known as the City of the Scholars. It is widely believed by alchemists in Sallosh that all substances in nature are built of the same fundamental building blocks, be they a man, the bow in his hand, or the saddle placed upon his steed. This idea has led a number of alchemists to search for the agents required to turn one substance into another, to largely limited success. The concepts of concentration and distillation have long been utilised, by attempts to isolate the legendary Akesar necessary to transmute copper into silver and lead into gold remain naught but fiction thus far. At the Keakh Starh Ha (The Palace of the Stars), astronomers study the skies and heavens above in hope of further understanding the nature of the surroundings, as well as more feasible and practical applications. It was noted by the famed astronomer of the Tagaez Fen, Savan Ohra that certain stars followed a rhythmic cycle of moving across the skies, disappearing for a period of time before reappearing moons later. This lead Savan to determine that the Known World must either exist on a spherical object rotating on an axis, or that the heavens themselves were shifting around the lands of man. Noting that nature was often inclined to the simplest and least complicated solution, he concluded that it was most likely the smaller object, the lands upon which he stood, that would be moving. His proposal of a spherical mass remains one of contention within the Academies of Sallosh, with vocal opposition lead by a number of high-profile thinkers even a century and a half after his declaration. The thinkers of Sallosh are also famed for their deep-rooted interest and hunger for understanding of the flora and fauna, the thorough detailing of each another effort to further their knowledge of the natural world. In the Braj Shashh, it is said that nearly a thousand species of bush, shrub tree and flower grow, facilitating detailed examination of each in terms of cycles of growth, fruit, blossom and seed production. From the delicate winter roses of the frozen North of Westeros to the towering hardwoods of the Summer Isles, the hardy grasses of the Lhazar to the shrubs of the Red Waste, the scrolls produced by the botanists of the Braj Shashh are said to extend in their contents across most of the Known World. Equally so, the Great Academy contains over two hundred stuffed and preserved beasts, ranging from Manticores from the eponymous isles in the Jade Sea, to a banded shadowcat acquired from Tyroshi slavers who had landed upon Storrold’s Point seeking freefolk to enslave. Medicine By the nature of their shared general desire to further understand the natural world around them, Sarnori savants and thinkers have long investigated the form of mankind, and its inner workings. The collective works of Hira Erazami and Laxo Sayahi are heralded as the pioneers of the concept of bodily circulation, stating that through breathing, vessels within the body are provided with air, which then work to energise the body through an oscillating back-and-forth flow of blood. Much of their research and diagrams are based on the bodies of those slain in the fighting pits of the Kingdoms, particularly that of the Qatal Ba’alash in the High City of Sarnath. With an increased understanding of botany over the past centuries, it has been noted by many alchemists that several floral extracts can be distilled and mixed with solvents for the cure of a range of infirmities, from a racing heart to persistent melancholy. Such findings have been collated into the Mjemw’eh or Compendium of Healing, a tome of nearly two thousands pages and ten thousand diagrams. The original is continuously added to as new research and investigations are performed, and is kept in the vault of the Great Library of Sallosh under a heavy and continuous guard. Religion Ancient Religion In ancient times, it is said there were just two gods that were worshipped in the Kingdom of Sarnor. The Spider Goddess, Ankasi, and Syan, the Serpent God. For thousands of years, the acolytes of both faiths would war and spill blood. Both would fight for the holy city of Lyber, both believing it to be sacred grounds of their deity. Soon, the river of Sarne would be filled with the blood of Acolytes and the city was destroyed. Only a few devout acolytes remain and reside in the ruined city of Lyber. Ankasi - Spider Goddess The one who haunts dreams, the one who reigns deaths and destruction upon enemies. The trickster and god of deceit. The one brings the plague, the one who seeks the chaos. Most often believed to take the shape of a giant black spider. Syan - The Serpent God The least tangible of the gods, the most elusive. The all seeing eye, the god that gifts its believers the sight to see beyond the the natural world and into the afterlife. It is said that the those who worship Syan, can even speak with the dead… and some can grant the gift of immortality. Modern Religion The Hundred Gods With the fall of the two faiths, the years that passed and the city of Kasath opening its gates to more travellers and merchants, the world of religion began to expand. Five thousand years later, the people of Sarnor worship the ‘Hundred Gods’. An ambiguous concept and a liberal view on faith. Accepting and showing an appreciation for all faiths, there are no religions that have been outlawed or downtrodden in Sarnor. The concept of religion is less palpable than the rest of Essos and Westeros, finding more questions being answered through technological developments and palpable elements. Timeline of Events * 113BA-112BA - The Twentieth Year of the Sarnori Civil War is marked by the outbreak of fighting between Gornath and Kasath against Sathar, a conflict remembered as the Battle of the Silver Sea. Whilst fighting raged upon the waves of the lake, Khal Moro sacked the city of Sathar, slaying its men and taking its women and children to be slaves. Previously allied, Gornath and Kasath both claimed dominion over the ruins of Sathar, starting war once more. * 107BA - Kasath is sacked by Khal Moro. As a measure of peace, the King of Mardosh takes one of Khal Moro's daughters as a wife, as well as offering military support against his neighbours. * 98BA - Dothraki raids begin to occur in the lands around the Silver Sea, causing food shortages in Gornath and Sallosh. * 95BA - Gornath is sacked by Khal Horro. The King of Gornath, having taken a Dothraki woman as one of his wives, is killed in his sleep the night that the Khalasar made their approach. * 92BA - In the third moon of 92BA, a joint Lorathi-Saathi fleet sails into the harbour of the Port of Ibben, upon the isle of Ib. Whilst they are forced back before any men could be landed, they deal a resounding blow to the Ibbenese naval power, as well as crippling their fishing fleet in a manner that would be felt across the isle for near half a decade. The army intended for Ib instead lands on the Essosi mainland, marching through the Kingdom of the Ifequevron before reaching the city of Ibbish. After a siege lasting four moons, the city eventually yields, although much of the loot obtained is lost to Dothraki khalasars before it can be returned to the homelands of the invaders. * 90BA - Sallosh is sacked by Khal Lajatto, who is slain in the fighting. * 87BA - Kyth and Hornoth fall in quick succession to the Dothraki hordes, lead by Khal Arlo and Khal Essino respectively. * 84BA-79BA - The Siege of Mardosh begins. Having run out of food, the inhabitants of Mardosh are forced to cannibalism to survive. Wishing to endure no more, the men kill their wives and children, before riding out to their deaths upon the battlefield. * 72BA - The so-called Field of Crows occurs, at which the Tagaez Fen make their final stand. The High-King of Sarnath Mazor Alexi is slain, along with all his family bar his son Fozhai, who was in the north petitioning the Tall Men of Saath, Sarys and the Ibbenese to join the fight against the Dothraki. The High-City of Sarnath is sacked shortly after the defeat. * 70BA - The gates of Rathylar are shattered by Khal Yaggo, and the city is sacked * 68BA - Sarys is evacuated, its residents fleeing to the west, where they joined with the people of Saath. * 67BA - Khal Zeggo arrives at Sarys, finding it largely abandoned. He sets the city ablaze, before leaving for Vaes Dothrak. * 66BA - Under the rule of Fozhai Alexi, the last of the true Tall Men retreat to Saath, awaiting the day when the unstoppable Dothraki horde eventually approached. They never did, and Saath remained unmolested. * 60BA - Hearing of the Qohorik victory over the Dothraki, Fozhai Alexi, son of Mazor Alexi rallies the last of the Tagaez Fen to him, seeking revenge upon the horselords for himself. At the Slaughter of the Braidless, the last of the late Khal Temmo's khalasar is slain, and the Tall Men are shown that victory over the horselords is possible firsthand. * 58BA - Forcing the Dothraki ravaging the Kingdom of Sarnor back east, the cities of Mardosh, Kyth and Hornoth are reclaimed, and the khalasars roaming freely through the grasslands are pushed into retreat. * 57BA - A joint Sarnori-Qohorik army liberates the city of Essaria, but takes heavy casualties when they are set upon by the Khalasar of Khal Rhakharo. Working to fortify the damaged city, they manage to survive until support arrives and Khal Rhakharo is forced to ride east. * 56BA - Rathylar and Sarnath are reclaimed by the eastward sweep of the now-united Sarnori forces. * 54BA - After a vicious battle won only by Sarnori ingenuity, Kasath, once known as the City of Caravans, is reclaimed by Fozhai Alexi and his army. * 51BA - The Khalasar of Khal Ono is caught between a legion of Sarnori chariots and Ibbenese raiders as they cross the estuary of the river Zhanhe at the Bay of Tusks. What remains flees for the Kingdom of the Rwhah Drekhta, known then as the Kingdom of the Ifequevron, and do not reemerge from the forest. * 47BA - Sallosh and Gornath are reclaimed in quick succession, although a truly dedicated rebuilding process would not begin for nearly half another decade. * 46BA - Khal Torro is slain near the ruined city of Sathar when Fozhai Alexi and his army of Sarnori, Qohorik and Essarian warriors continues to sweep east. The city is reclaimed by the Sarnori, and recolonisation slowly by surely begins. * 43BA - The destruction of Vaes Dothrak. Fozhai Alexi is greviously injured in the fighting, but it is with joy that he passes, four days later, knowing the era of the Dothraki draws to a close. He is buried at the peak of the Mother of Mountains, so that he may always watch over the destroyed city, ensuring it never rise again. In the half a decade following the destruction of Vaes Dothrak, the last of the true Khalasars are hunted down by Sarnori, Qartheen, Ghiscari and Ibbenese scouting parties. * 42BA - After the destruction of Vaes Dothrak, the armies of Mardosh under King Tuzor Alsis and his general Luzor Ilari march north along the river flowing north from the Womb of the World. The few scouting parties that venture into the forested region known to the Dothraki as the Kingdom of the Ifequevron do not return, and those that skirt the edges claim to have seen wraiths and spectres roaming the woodlands. Alsis and Ilari rename the region the Kingdom of the Rwhah Drekhta, meaning "Forest Phantoms", and upon reaching the Shivering Sea, elect to march along the coastline in their return west. In doing so, they discover the ruined city of Vaes Leisi, ravaged by the Dothraki years previously and identify it as a valuable outpost against the Ibbenese. Naming it Leizoy, Ilari is installed as King of the new settlement, in acknowledgement for his efforts against the Dothraki * 41BA - Ibbenese raiders strike at Norvoshi, Lorathi and Sarnori fishing colonies along the coastline of the Shivering Sea, declaring the bounties of the waves, and the lands overlooking them, to be theirs by right. In retaliation, a fleet from Sarys, bolstered by converted fishing skiffs and vessels from the Lorathi colony of Morosh begins to patrol the waves west of the Bay of Tusks, sinking ever Ibbenese vessel, military or civilian with impunity. * 40BA - The rebuilding of the legendary Amai Alakead in Sallosh begins, following a pledge by the new King of Sarnath, the High-King of the Kingdom of Sarnor that never again should a foreign threat against the Sarnori be ignored. Halzor Alexi acknowledges the importance of technological advancement in the survival of the Tagaez Fen, and thus invests heavily in the academies of Sarnath and Sallosh, intending them to be grander than ever before. * 26BA - War between Ibben and the Kingdom of Sarnor breaks out for the first time in over a century after growing tensions regarding the ownership of the estuary of the Sarne. * 25BA - The second conflict of the first of the new era of Ibbenese-Sarnori wars is fought in the waves near the city of Sarys. Ibbenese whalers converted for war smash a Sarnori fleet, and Sarys falls into the hands of the Ibbenese for nearly a decade. * 23BA - The Battle of the Bay of Tusks occurs. Ibbenese hunter-ships finally locate the remainder of the Sarnori fleet shattered at the battle of Sarys two years previously. Whilst greviously outnumbered, the Sarnori put up an impressive stand, before finally being overwhelmed. * 18BA - The residents of Morosh petition the Tagaez Fen of Saath and Sarys for aid following an attack by the residents of Ib, but recent Ibbenese raids leave the Sarnori unable to offer meaningful assistance. * 17BA - Representatives from the Ilhaili and Ouri families of Sarys travel to Braavos to ask the Sealord for aid against the Ibbenese following the destruction of their main fleets at Sarys and the Battle of the Bay of Tusks. He offers assistance, but only in exchange for Sarnori help in the subjugation of Volantene forces within the Disputed Lands. Knowing their armies to be too weak to be stretched across western Essos, the Tagaez Fen decline. * 16BA - Liberation of Sarys through the efforts of the fleets and armies of Saath, as well as reinforcements from Sarnath and Essaria. The Ibbenese rulers are ejected from the city. * 8BA - Ibbenese whalers and Sarnori fishing skiffs clash in the Shivering Sea. Tensions excalate to the preparation of warships, but no fighting breaks out for another year and a half. * 6BA - Battle of the Bloody Tusk occurs between Sarnori and Ibbenese warships in the Bay of Tusks. Winning a decisive victory against the people of Sarnor, Ibbenese dominion over the waters of the bay remain uncontested for nearly a decade before conflict breaks out once more. * 2AA - Second Battle of the Bloody Tusk occurs when a fleet bound from Sarys clashes with an Ibbenese war convoy just east of the Bay of Tusks. Like the last conflict nearly a decade prior, the sturdy form of the Ibbenese vessels delivers victory once more, although casualties are much greater than previous conflicts. Ibbenese control over the Bay of Tusks begins to wain. * 5AA - The Kings of Kasath and Sathar come into conflict with the Great Masters of Meereen over the control of the Ghiscari hill city of Hazdahn Mo. The Battle of the Red Peak represents the first of many conflicts between the Sarnori and the Ghiscari. * 14AA - An invasion force from Sathar, lead by the King Lalir Ovros marches once again for Hazdahn Mo, seeking revenge for the death of his brother at the Battle of the Red Peak. Sacking the city, he marches east for Ghardaq, where he too is eventually slain by a Ghiscari army commanded by the King of Meereen and bolstered by the Second Sons sellsword company. * 23AA - Fighting breaks out between the cities of Hornoth and Rathylar, and only ends after the deaths of eight members of nobility upon the battlefield. After the death of his father, Huzor Uli is crowned on the battlefield, only to be slain a few moments earlier, along with his brother and cousin. * 32AA - Work finally finishes on Halzor Alexi's vision for the Amai Alakead of Sallosh, although the Great Academy has continued to be populated since the city was first reclaimed from the Dothraki, and has continued to expand its scope and scale ever year since. Significant additions include the Keakh Starh Ha (The Palace of the Stars) and the Braj Shashh (The Glass Tower) where the skies and stars and the flora and fauna of the Known World are studied, respectively. * 39AA - After a spurned marriage, Mardosh declares war on Kyth. The Ouri Family of Sarys, having accepted the rejected marriage, joins the conflict on the side of Mardosh, and galleys from both cities sail up the Sarne to the confluence between it and the Kewhe, where they set the fleet of Kyth ablaze. The King of Mardosh's daughter supposedly received a marriage proposal from every noble family in Kyth over the following three moons. * 64AA - Fighting erupts between Kyth and Rathylar after the latter blockades trade of the former with the High City of Sarnath. At the Field of Silence, the two cities met, starting a battle that raged for the best part of a week, and cost near five thousand lives. Included in the number was the King of Rathylar himself, Onlo Eifali, who was cut down by a war chariot amidst the chaos. * 97AA-99AA - Conflicts start to brew between Sarys and Sallosh when King Uvali declares the territory of his city extends across the entirety of the Kingdom of the Omber, a region historically claimed by the people of the City of Scholars. In response, Prince Anlar, heir to the throne of Sallosh marches an army up the road connecting the two cities and threatens to pillage all trade headed south until King Uvali rescinds his claim. In an attempt to call the bluff of Prince Anlar, King Uvali sends his General south with a shipment of gold bound for Sathar, but the convoy is attacked nonetheless. Fighting continues between the cities of Sarys and Sallosh, peaking at the Battle of Aln, named for the eponymous valley to near the source of the River Kewhe. Each army occupied one side of the valley, Sarys the northwest, Sallosh the southeast, until descending into chaos following a series of attempted flanking manoeuvres and charges. Both sides claim victory. Following the two of the bloodiest battles in Sarnori history, Sallosh sues for peace, a plea that the new King Uvali, son of the one slain at the Battle of Twefanba Peaan (translated roughly as the Battle of Endless Storm for the rains that ravaged the battlefield) is quick to accept. The Kingdom of Omber is split between the two cities, an agreement that would remain uncontested for another one hundred and forty years. * 148AA - Savan Ohra, an astronomer based in Sallosh, notes that certain stars followed a rhythmic cycle of moving across the skies, disappearing for a period of time before reappearing moons later. He theorises that the Known World must either exist on a spherical object rotating on an axis, or that the heavens themselves were shifting around the lands of man. * 169AA - The Eighth War of the Axe erupts when a Lorathi fleet attacks the peninsula in unison with the arrival of a Norvoshi army. At the Battle of Crab Cove, the Lorathi fleet is defeated handily by a flotilla of Sarnori vessels, captained by the noble family of Elros. Seeking to protect the Golden Current, the Sarnori also send an army by ship to the Axe, however they are hindered by storms. When they arrive, Ib Nes is in flames, and a number of the precious metal mines taken by the Norvoshi. The Mopaan family of Essaria councils Sarnori, Ibbenese and Norvoshi generals alike, and a compromise is reached. The northern tip of the peninsula, belongs to the Ibbenese, whereas that further south than the ruins of Ib Nes belongs to the Norvoshi, thus forming an uneasy relationship. Sarnor continues to profit from the agreement. * 219AA - As is the tradition of the Sarnori people, Kings would often take multiple wives and commonly the wives were daughters and sisters of other Sarnori Kings. Upon the murder of Princess Lulai Abbali, wife of King Oxor Atiyah and at the hands of Princess Huli Ata, the King of Kyth would declare war upon the Kingdom of Rathylar, seeking vengeance for his murdered sister. Thousands would die over the actions of one girl, an action that have been done hundreds of times before and would be done again thousands of times over in the future. Despite the events, their traditions would not change. * 234AA-236AA - An army from Sathar marches south, bound for the Ghiscari city of Hazdahn Mo. Opting to instead starve out the occupants that engage in an assault, Mahor Ansoura, King of Sathar, begins to siege the city. The city of Hazdahn Mo finally breaks, having been sieged by a Sarnori army for two years. The Masters of the city surrender, and mercy is shown in exchange for their support of the Sarnori Kingdoms. The city is renamed Hadosh by its new occupants. * 237AA - Fighting once again breaks out between Sarys and Sallosh over control of the peninsula on the northern coast of Essos known as the Kingdom of the Omber. Seeking a marriage between his daughter and the heir to the throne of the High-King of Sarnath, King Ouma of Sallosh offers the land as a dowry, angering the people of Sarys, who claim that they have no right to such an offering. The conflict comes to a finale at the Valley of Aln, but unlike the first Battle of Aln, the people of Sarys win a decisive victory against the Tagaez Fen of Sallosh. Sallosh loses its claim over the Kingdom of the Omber, and with it hope of marriage. * 243AA-246AA - Rumours of a Dothraki Khalasar being spotted near where Vaes Dothrak once existed reach the cities of Gornath, Sathar and Hadosh. King Mahor Ansoura sallies his men from his new seat near the Skazhazadhan and rides northeast in search of the horselords. After nearly two and a half years hunting a fabled Dothraki Khalasar, Mahor Ansoura and his men return to Hazdahn Mo, finding it occupied by Ghiscari. Before they can prepare for a siege, the inhabitants ride forth from the gates, attacking the Tagaez Fen as they prepare their weaponry and siege units. After a devastating first clash, King Mahor calls for a full retreat, marching his men north once more, to the seat of his family, Sathar. * 244AA - A Ghiscari army arrives at Hadosh, finding the city devoid of its defenders, as Mahor and his army had marched northeast three moons prior. The city falls relatively bloodlessly, and Ghiscari rule is once again established. The city is renamed back to Hazdahn Mo. Among those involved in the liberation of the city is Makmol zo Ozoz, who would latter grow infamous as part of the Band of Nine. * 256AA - Lorathi dignitaries arrive in Saath, seeking assistance against the Sealord and Braavos, the parties responsible for the recent subjugation and indoctrination of Lorath itself into the Alliance of the Narrow Sea. Agreeing to a number of one-sided trade deals in payment, the Lorathi secure support of a Sarnori fleet when the time comes. * 258AA - Nyessano Eranyr arrives at Saath, requesting the naval assistance he was instrumental in preparing two years prior. He leaves the territory of the Sarnori with a fleet of thirty warships within a moon, the number supplemented by Ibbenese raiders who he had previously forged an agreement with. * 259AA - The Battle of Lorassyon Wake occurs when the Lorathi-Sarnori-Ibbenese fleet supporting Magister Nyessano Eranyr clashes with the Lorathi-Braavosi fleet supporting the Alliance of the Narrow Sea. With much of the Sealord's fleet elsewhere, dealing with Ibbenese raiders ravaging the Braavosian Coastlands, the strength of the Sarnori navy proves victorious, however Eranyr's own vessel is amongst those sunk. Knowing that it was only through Nyessano that they could prosper, Admiral Tugor Ahasoi orders the fleet return to Saath, and thus Alliance influence over Lorath is maintained. * 273AA-275AA - The Marel Family of Essaria attempts to stage a coup, seizing control from King Alor Ajjara near-bloodlessly. Messengers are sent east to Qohor, asking for assistance from the Motts and Eranels in consolidating power in the city in name of Qohor, reflecting the Marels' origin in the Free City. The Qohorik army arrives at Essaria within a moon, nearly fifteen thousand strong, but is stopped in their path by a similarly-sized force lead by the King of Mardosh, Eno Omoi. Following numerous clashes, skirmishes and full blown battles, the Qohorik army is slowly forced back west, the campaign ending in the Forest of Qohor nearly ten moons later. In the meanwhile however, the Tiger Triarch Laerys Maegyr had rallied an army of his own, seeing his opportunity in the disorder caused by the existing conflict. In a bold action, he and his men sail up the Selhoru, then march past the source of the River Shakhe, before quickly and viciously taking the city of Essaria for themselves. In 275AA, whilst the Volantenes assisted the Myrish in their struggle to maintain independence from the Sealord, the Sarnori march to the city of Essaria. Upon their approach, riots breakdown in the streets, and the military presence of the Volantenes makes a final and bloody last stand in their newly constructed barracks in the north-east of the city. The gates of Essaria are thrown open to the approaching army, and a Tagaez Fen is reappointed as King once again. * 287AA - The simultaneous sieges of Sathar and Kasath by a Ghiscari army of sellswords and slave warriors following growing tensions regarding trade through Kasath and Hazdahn Mo result in the disorganisation of commerce throughout the Kingdom of Sarnor. Whilst the cities are eventually delivered from their beleaguers by armies from Gornath-by-the-Lake and Sarnath, the effects of the blockade of the City of Caravans remains felt to present day. * 288AA - The Burning of the Skahazadhan. In response to the huge Ghiscari-funded army of sellswords and slave warriors marching north in an attempt to sack Kasath and Sathar a year previously, the High-King of Sarnath leads the counter-attack personally, bringing with him an army numbering near forty thousand, including eight thousand chariots. They ravage the cities of Mareekai, Ghardaq and Hesh, but cannot break the defences of Meereen. Sacking Hazdahn Mo on their return to Sarnor, they leave a wake of devastation and death in their wake. * 294AA - Disputes over territory in the Sarne Delta break out between Saath and Sarys, primarily over fishing grounds in the rich fertile waters at the edge of the Shivering Sea. When the Lorathi fishing colony of Morosh also tries to make good their claim, the Sarnori cities unite against them, and burn any fishing vessels that sail south into the estuary, instead of out into open water. * 298AA - All praise the High-King of Sarnor! Whilst not all the Kings and Queens of Sarnor are content with being ruled from Sarnath, the Kingdom of Sarnor remains more complete than it has been in the history of the nation. The domain of the Sarnori is split roughly into four sections, all of which swear fealty to the High-King Alexi. The Grassland Kingdoms, centred around the cities near the Sarne in the steppes themselves, namely Rathylar, Hornoth, and Kyth, as well as Sarnath itself. The Silver Kingdoms, named for the Silver Sea around which they are located, include Gornath-by-the-Lake, Kasath, Sallosh and Sathar. The Northern Kingdoms, built around the terminus of the river Sarne are that of Sarys, Saath and Mardosh, and the Outlying Kingdoms represent the cities of Leizoy and Essaria. Category:Sarnor Category:The Kingdom of Sarnor Category:Essos